Why does Pride still matter in 2024?
Around the world June is celebrated as Pride month in remembrance of the Stonewall Riots in June 1969. It’s a way to celebrate the LGBTQ+ community but to also raise awareness of issues faced by the LGBTQ+ community. But as the month comes to a close we wanted to explore why it is still needed today and how our fight for equality doesn’t end with the month of June.
LGBTQ+ rights have come a long way in recent years, but there is still a lot of inequality and challenges that are faced by LGBTQ+ identifying people especially for the Trans community.
So why does Pride still matter in 2024?
There are 60 countries around the world that criminalise homosexuality, and at least 6 of those making it punishable by the death penalty. [source]
In the UK and US there are lawmakers repealing existing laws protecting LGBTQ+ individuals as well as creating new laws marginalising them and forcing them into dangerous situations. [source 1 / source 2]
The current wait time in the UK to be seen at a gender identity clinic is almost 5 years. [source]
Nearly half of LGBTQ+ young people (45 per cent) – including 64 per cent of trans young people – are bullied for being LGBTQ+ at school or college. [source]
Nearly half of bullied LGBTQ+ learners in sixth form colleges (47 per cent) and nearly two in three bullied LGBTQ+ learners in FE colleges (63 per cent) said this bullying had a negative effect on their plans for future education [source]
One in eight trans people (12 per cent) have been physically attacked by customers or colleagues in the last year because they are trans. One in ten black, Asian and minority ethnic LGBTQ+ staff (10 per cent) have been physically attacked at work in the last year because of their sexual orientation and/or gender identity, compared to three percent of white LGBTQ+ staff. [source]
One in 10 LGBTQ+ people have experienced barriers to progression in their careers. [source]
More than a third of LGBTQ+ people have hidden or disguised their identity in the workplace through fear of discrimination [source]
One in 5 LGBTQ+ job searchers felt discriminated against [source]
24% of young homeless people are LGBTQ+. [source]
A lot of older LGBTQ+ people are missing out on or not choosing care services, such as care homes, for fear that their relationships are not considered appropriate by providers. [source]
Those are just some of the statistics representing the inequality faced by the LGBTQ+ community. So as we can see, there is still a lot of work to be done in our workplaces, schools and personal lives.
There are a variety of ways that we can all be allies to the LGBTQ+ community. In the workplace we can ensure that everyone, regardless of their sexual identity, can be supported to grow in their careers and their personal life. But we can all make small steps in our personal lives too: listen to queer musicians’ music, read queer author’s work, buy from queer run shops. AKT has collated a list of LGBTQ+ cultural resources as a starting point for inspiration, so take a look here.
At CL we’ve taken Pride month to improve upon and create new internal policies to support people from all walks of life, ensuring that they feel supported and empowered within our working community and by the work that we create. We want to be part of the change we aspire to see in the world, and alongside our personal lives, we believe our work can play a positive role in helping to promote a fairer, safer and kinder world.
Although it’s a celebration of how far we have come in terms of LGTBQ+ rights, we all should remember that Pride started as a protest and that we still have a long way to go.
